The countdown to Liverpool’s new chief executive, Peter Moore, starting his role continues to tick down.

The 62-year-old will take over from Ian Ayre in June, but has now worked his final day as Electronic Arts’ chief competition officer.

The boyhood red penned an emotional tribute to the gaming industry, of which he has been a part of for 18 years, as he gets set to move into a role with his hometown club.

“These are the words that I have dreaded writing for weeks now, following the announcement of my appointment as CEO of Liverpool FC,” he wrote. “I am leaving behind thousands of great memories that comprise the career journey of a lifetime.

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Bring his 18-year experience to the club

Moore comes with an impressive CV. He initially began in marketing with global brands Patrick USA and Reebok, before entering the gaming industry with SEGA.

It was there he launched the Dreamcast, before making the difficult decision to stop creating games consoles, instead focusing on developing games. “I had to fire a lot of people, it was not a pleasant day,” he said.

That decisiveness will be important at the Reds.

In 2003, Microsoft secured Moore’s services as corporate vice-president of their interactive entertainment business division to help them boost Xbox’s market share and launch the Xbox 360.

It is at EA where his stock has risen astronomically, however. Moving there 10 years ago, he was soon promoted to the role of chief operating officer, and is credited with the immense success of their FIFA video game series.

Helping turn it into one of the biggest-selling game franchises in history, Liverpool will hope he can translate the success of digital football into the real-life thing.